Sheraton Grand Krakow part of the 'Wide open for sustainable meetings' initiative

Many companies in Krakow are implementing creative sustainability initiatives, and therefore, through a series of interviews, we want to present their solutions as best practices. This is also of importance in the context of the GDS-Index project, in which the activities of tourism industry providers (such as hotels, restaurants, airports, agencies, conference facilities or universities), and improvements in their quality of services provided to tourists and residents is scored.

Find out more in an interview with Paweł Mroziak, Head of Sales and Marketing, who explains the solutions used at the five-star Sheraton Grand Krakow hotel.

What initiatives in line with sustainability objectives are or will be implemented at Sheraton Grand Kraków by the end of 2023 in relation to the operations of your hotel?

Sustainability objectives are a priority for our company, as we strive to reduce our environmental impact and save energy. We have already introduced, and plan to further implement, a series of specific initiatives to help achieve these goals.

As a first step, we carried out a major project replacing freezers and fridges with more eco-friendly models powered with CO2 refrigerants and equipped with a heat recovery system. And what’s more, this heat is then effectively used to heat tap and swimming pool water, thus helping us reduce energy consumption.

The next step was to install 22 meters with control and notification systems, a solution giving us full control over energy consumption in different areas of our company, enabling us to take more conscious decisions regarding optimisation of energy consumption.

In our kitchen, we installed a smart ventilation system that automatically adjusts itself to what is being done in the kitchen and to the stove hood temperature, a state-of-the-art solution that allows us to avoid unnecessary energy consumption, at the same time improving the efficiency of our ventilation system.

As for measures that our guests can plainly see – we decided to replace all the TV sets with new low-energy consumption models, which significantly reduced our carbon footprint, benefited environmental protection, and also increased the standard of our rooms and the comfort of our guests.

Last, but not least, we introduced LED lighting, replacing all the remaining standard light bulbs with more energy-efficient LED ones.

These initiatives of our company show our deep commitment to sustainability and responsible use of natural resources. Our priority is to continuously improve our environmentally-friendly approach and continue to strive to minimise the impact on our planet. We are ready to continue our efforts with sustainability in mind, as a positive example for other businesses, and help build a better, greener future.

What are your actions in terms of employee issues or cooperation with subcontractors?

We are currently dynamically developing a volunteering programme giving our employees a unique opportunity to become engaged in local organisations.

We believe that employee engagement in volunteering projects will not only benefit our partner organisations, but also enhance the feeling of social responsibility of our team. Our long-term goal is to exert a positive impact on the society in which we live, and on the environment in which we operate.

In terms of supply chains, we want to source as many products as possible locally, in order to reduce our carbon footprint, and we also intend to stop using disposable plastic. In our rooms, we only serve water in glass bottles, and cosmetics are provided in bigger packaging so that they last longer. We also replaced disposable plastic straws and cutlery (for take-out food) with paper and wooden items.

Do you have or are you interested in obtaining a sustainability certificate for your company?

We continuously strive to improve our environment protection practices, with our team undertaking initiatives to minimise our impact on the environment, and we also support local communities. By managing the hotel responsibly, we want to create a friendly and sustainable environment for our guests and the entire region.

We are extremely proud that our hotel, Sheraton Grand Krakow, was awarded the Green Key certificate, providing tangible confirmation of our sustainable practices and involvement in environmental protection. We achieved this prestigious certificate thanks to the long-term effort of our team aimed at energy conservation, efficient water management, waste recycling and environmental protection.

We are also proud to have received BREEAM certification, which proves that the structure of our building and our construction efforts comply with the highest environmental standards. During the designing and modernisation of our hotel, our focus is on sustainable materials and solutions that minimise our impact on local ecosystems.

Do your customers expect your company to follow sustainable solutions and have certificates to prove it?

These days most customers expect companies, including hotels, to adopt environmental measures and boast certificates to prove their engagement. We are observing a trend whereby sustainability  and caring for the environment have become important factors determining the choice of accommodation of travellers – both for individual travel, and with regard to organising conferences, trainings or other events.

At Sheraton Grand Krakow we put special focus on sustainability and engage in various initiatives to this end. We are happy to say that we employ environmentally-friendly practices, such as saving energy, segregating waste, and supporting local suppliers and community activities. This is all in response to the needs of our guests – and tourism, as an industry, can impact the environment, which is why it is so important to make the right choices.

What trends in organising meetings have you recently observed?

We continue to observe fascinating trends when it comes to organising meetings and events. Hybrid events have recently become more popular, combining both virtual and on-site options, a flexible approach that attracts participants regardless of their location.

We can also see that customers treat sustainability as something increasingly important, and they look for places that make an effort in terms of environmental protection and limiting the negative impact on the planet. The sustainability initiatives we undertake are to some extent a way to address these needs of our guests.

Technology plays a key role in organising events. State-of-the-art tools and mobile apps allow participants to interact in real time, share experiences and ask questions. They also make it easier to manage events, register participants and analyse data.

Personalised experiences are also vital, and guests expect us to acknowledge their individual preferences, from their choice of food to the agenda of the event. Each experience should be unique and tailored to their needs.

At our hotel we try to meet their expectations by offering not only a unique experience and local cultural attractions, but also by caring for our guests’ health and safety. We strive to provide successful and unforgettable events, which will be well remembered by satisfied participants.

In order to inspire our readers, please tell us where you look for knowledge and inspiration in terms of organising sustainable events?

Sustainability is not only a responsibility, but also an opportunity to create unique experiences for our guests. To this end, we draw inspiration from a variety of sources.

As part of the international Sheraton brand, we follow the sustainability standards and guidelines determined by the chain. Certificates such as Green Key or BREEAM are an important confirmation of our involvement in environmental protection.

We regularly ask our customers and partners for feedback, enabling us to better understand their needs and expectations in terms of our sustainable approach. Every opinion is valuable for us, and helps us adapt our services to their needs.

We continuously observe trends in the hospitality industry in terms of sustainability innovation and best practices, which allows us to align our efforts with the latest development in this area.

We want to provide our guests with unique, environmentally-friendly and socially responsible experiences when they stay at Sheraton Grand Krakow. Our approach to organising sustainable events is therefore a combination of knowledge, innovation and cooperation with our customers and partners.